More Truk Lagoon Pics

       Calm waters on most days











     Fish life is prolific











Finning along the side of the Rio De Janeiro Maru

Location: Near Uman, Chuuk Lagoon

Description: 9,626 ton passenger / cargo liner converted to submarine tender

Length: 142 metres (463 feet)

Depth: Max depth 35 metres (115 feet), 12 metres to top of wreck (39 feet)

The Rio de Janeiro Maru is the fourth largest ship in the lagoon. Lying on starboard side. Boxes of sake bottles are in the rear hold and the rear telegraph hangs down. The superstructure is very intact although the bow is damaged on the port side.

Most ships have vast quantities of Ordnance.

More Truk Lagoon Dives

Crockery

from The Kensho Maru

The Kensho Maru, also translated as Kansho Maru.

Location: Between Fefan, Tonoas and Weno, Chuuk Lagoon

Description: 4,862 ton passenger / cargo ship

Length: 116 metres (384 feet)

Depth: Max depth 35 metres (130 feet), 24 metres (80 feet) to deck, 18 metres (60 feet) to top of wreck

from The Heian Maru

Location: Between Weno and Tonoas, Chuuk Lagoon

Description: 11,614 ton passenger / cargo luxury liner converted to submarine tender

Length: 155 metres (509 feet)

Depth: Max depth 36 metres (120 feet), 12 metres (40 feet) to top of wreck

Heian Maru is the largest ship in Truk lagoon and lies on its port side. The name is clearly visible on the bow, both in English and Japanese. We went into the holds where there were torpedoes.

Interesting that Crockery Markings are stamped in "English"

Short video clip of Glynis diving The Kensho Maru

Diving in Truk Lagoon - Wrecks

I have missed a few weeks since my last blog input...... Oops !

Time to add a few pics ....

September , we completed our Padi Wreck Diver qualification. This we did on the EX- HMAS Adelaide. So we're qualified wreck divers, yet another specialty to our lengthy list of diving qualifications. Next, we would like to complete the video course.

We then took off on the dive trip to Truk lagoon, Micronesia.

We flew Sydney/Cairns/Guam/Truk & return the same....

Although we stayed 5 nights in Guam at the Hilton for a chill. And Chill it was. Really lovely place.

The Diving was awesome in Truk. Diving on the sumptuous Liveaboard - The Odyssey, was exceptional. High quality all round.

The wreck diving was awesome........

The list of ships we dived on are :

* Kiyosumi Maru (450' freighter)
* Yamagiri Maru (436.5' passenger cargo)
* Fumitzuki (330' destroyer)
* Shinkoku Maru (550' fleet oiler)
* Unkai Maru (305' freighter)
* Rio de Janeiro Maru (450' passenger transport and submarine tender)
* Sankisan Maru (367.5' passenger transport)
* Heian Maru (510' submarine tender)
* Betty Bomber (66' G4M Bomber)
* Kensho Maru (380' cargo ship)

Most of them are Gravesites with human remains on most of them....

      The Odyssey dive deck

                 The Betty Bomber

Location: Near Ettea, Chuuk Lagoon

Description: Mitsubishi G4M bomber

Length: 20 metres (65 feet)

Depth: Max depth 15 metres (50 feet)

The Betty Bomber is upright but it is pretty smashed up. The nose is very broken and the engines are a good 50m swim off the starboard front side where they broke away from the plane and travelled forward. The fuselage was full of glassfish and there was lovely soft corals on the wings.

Fujikawa Maru

Location: Near Etten, Chuuk Lagoon

Description: 6,983 ton 6-hold freighter

Length: 132 metres (433 feet)

Depth: Max depth 34 metres (112 feet), 18 metres (60 feet) to deck, 9 metres (30 feet) to top of wreck

The Fujikawa Maru is a very intact, upright wreck. The ship was mainly used to transport aircraft. In Hold 1 we found aircraft propeller blades and wings.In Hold 2, which is in front of the superstructure, there are three Zeros without engines.

Fujikawa Maru Bow Telegraph

At the Bow there is a 6-inch bow gun which was taken from an old cruiser.

The Skull (pictured) gave us a sombre reminder of lives lost.

Woy Woy Judo Club on Tour

Perth, Western Australia

10th - 12th June 2011

A flight out from Sydney to Perth on Friday arrived into Perth Airport. A distance 1 way of just over 4000 kms. Danny Simmons Jnr & Snr were there to meet Paul Sheean & myself. They drove us to the apartments and at about Half past midnight you would think we were ready for sleep. But No..... we had to talk Judo. (Cliff Illingworth knows what thats like ..... ! What do you reckon Cliff ?)

So with an early start saturday we attended the Arena in Joondalup. The event was in a decent sized arena that had set up a 4 matted area.

Saturday saw Jordan Smith take on Australias best Junior Men in the U81 Kgs event. Suffice to say that he Kicked arse and was unbeaten to take that National title. He is now looking to attend the Junior World Champs in Cape Town, South Africa (3rd to 6th November 2011)

Plenty for Woy Woy Judo Club to celebrate already.

On Sunday Kayla Wells (Senior Women U73kgs), Mike Griffiths (NagenoKata) Jordan Smith (Senior Men U81kgs) & Danny Simmons (Senior Men U73kgs) took to the mat with great expectations.

Danny was unfortunate to have a bad run and was unplaced on this occasion. However he sets off to Miami, USA on 1st & 2nd July 2011. Then to Isla de Margarita, Venezuela on 9th & 10th July 2011. To represent Australia in the World Cup events.

Kayla produced the adjudged throw of the day (Ouchigari) along her way to a very creditable 5th place. losing in the fight for the bronze medal.

Mike Griffiths (Tori)
on his way to National Silver medal.........

Mike The elder statesman in the Woy Woy team, produced a commanding performance to walk away with runner up & silver medal along with his NagenoKata partner Rod.

This left Jordan to rise to the occasion of Senior mens U81kgs category.

Not satisfied with Gold the day before. Jordan pulled out all the stops and went unbeaten through to the final where he gave a credible account of himself against the vastly experienced Brent Iverson. Jordan took silver medal in this category.

So now hoping for selection for the Senior World Championships in Paris later this year.... ??

So Woy Woy took a 1 Gold, 2 silvers and a 5th place at this prestigious National event.

The Club supporters & Coaches that attended were mighty proud.

To crown the weekend Danny Simmons Snr was being judged for International Grades Examiner status while judging the Nage No Kata.    (Danny Seated 2nd from the right)

Well done ALL !

A night of celebration. But a long tiring flight back to Sydney overnight.

PATAGONIA

Patagonia is a geographic region containing the southernmost portion of South America. It is located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the south west towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean. To the west, it includes the territory of Valdivia through Tierra del Fuego archipelago

The name Patagonia comes from the word patagón used by Magellan in 1520 to describe the native people that his expedition thought to be giants. It is now believed the Patagons were actually Tehuelches with an average height of 180 cm (5′11″) compared to the 155 cm (5′1″) average for Spaniards of the time.

The Argentine portion of Patagonia includes the provinces of Neuquén, Río Negro, Chubut and Santa Cruz, as well as the eastern portion of Tierra del Fuego archipelago . The Argentine politico-economic Patagonic Region includes the Province of La Pampa.

 

The Chilean part of Patagonia embraces the southern part of Valdivia, Los Lagos in Lake Llanquihue, Chiloé, Puerto Montt and the Archaeological site of Monte Verde, also the fiords and islands south to the regions of Aisén and Magallanes, including the west side of Tierra del Fuego and Cape Horn.

MOUNT FITZROY nr El Chaltén village

This sums up the views 
on the trip ........
Awesome !!! 
(Is that the Stig ????)

Monte Fitz Roy is a mountain located near El Chaltén village, in the Southern Patagonian Ice Field, in Patagonia, on the border between Argentina and Chile. The mountain is also known as Cerro Chaltén, Cerro Fitz Roy, or simply Mount Fitz Roy. Cerro is a Spanish word meaning mountain, while Chaltén comes from a Tehuelche (Aonikenk) word meaning "smoking mountain", due to a cloud that usually forms around the mountain's peak. 

The mountain has a reputation of being "ultimate", despite its average height (although being the highest peak in the Los Glaciares park, it is less than half the size of the Himalayan giants), because the sheer granite faces present long stretches of arduous technical climbing. In addition, the weather in the area is exceptionally inclement and treacherous. It also attracts many photographers thanks to its otherworldly shape. The area, while still fairly inaccessible, was even more isolated until the recent development of El Chaltén village. The mountain climb, however, remains extremely difficult and is the preserve of very experienced climbers. Today, when a hundred people may summit Mount Everest in a single day, Monte Fitz Roy may only be successfully ascended once a year. We were very lucky to get such a fabulously clear picture as it is normally shrouded in cloud....

Can't help but believe how beautiful this part of the world is !

Managed to get the romantic
evening pic whilst out with Glynis

RTW 2010-11 - Patagonia

What better way to start the trip than the Argie beers we HAD to taste !

Patagonia Amber Beer